Generally I try to keep this blog positive and mention only the great things going on around Greenville but I'm going to make an exception. Below are two images found on Dylann Roof's hard drive.

Greenvillians will likely recognize the first one. It's a shot of the footbridge near the Peace Center. You can see from the flags hung on the bridge that this was taken around the time of Artishphere.

In his manifesto he mentions that his inspiration largely came from reading the cherry picked articles on a site called the Council of Conservative Citizens. On that site you will find an ad for The Dixie Republic, a ridiculous store located in Traveler's Rest.

So was he drawn to Greenville County because of it's beautiful downtown, or to purchase confederate

paraphernalia such as seen on his car, or to expand his knowledge of separatist history? Well two of the three seem pretty obvious.

This confused young man was drawn here because of our "heritage" and the fact that we we still embrace it so openly pretending that it represents something other than hate and division.

Meanwhile the Dixie Republic is still in business and the confederate flag is still displayed prominently in front of our Statehouse.

Is heritage really more important than lives?

Edit: The Greenville News has now published a story expounding on the above.